Little Women
The girl's father is away at war
They are presumably with the North (Abraham Lincoln's Side)
Because they lived in New England
and refused to use products that were made by slaves.
How this Affects Little Women
Civil War
The American Civil War occurred in the 1860s. The North, including Abraham Lincoln, wanted to abolish slavery, whereas the South , who used slaves to do intense manual labour, like pick cotton, wanted to keep their slaves. Battle ensued where brothers where forced to kill brothers depending on their location.
Setting- Contextual Factors
Scarlet Fever
This majorly effects the book characters when Beth contracts Scarlet Fever forom holding a dick baby and gets really sick. All the characters must find their inner strength when Beth dies. It allows the characters to explore their heart and find out about themselves. Jo, for instance, learns that her sisters mean the world to her.
Scarlet Fever
Scarlet fever is a potentially deadly airborne illness. It killed lots of people until a vaccine was patented in 1924. The vaccine is no longer used and scarlet fever is now treated with antibiotics.
Women's Place in Little Women
The lack of women's rights in Little Women annoys a few of the characters, especially Marmee and Jo. Jo wants to go to University to become a writer, but is unable to go because of her gender. Throughout the book, we hear John Brooke express his feeling that women are delicate, and should be taken care of, which really irritates Marmee as she insists that girls are just as capable as boys. Jo, eventually, publishes a piece under the name of Joseph because no one would publish her as a women.
Women's Rights
Women didn't have the right to vote, own property. The Suffrage act at the time continued to influence women to fight for their rights. Women were given better rights in 1920 with the nineteenth amendment of the US Constitution
Women had a role in society of the homemaker, with men being the bread winners. Women were supposed to clean cook and sew. They werent encouraged to go to university, because there was no point in a women going.